A New Angle

67 minutes - 2.28 miles - Rhulain

 With the time change, it is really dark in the morning when I go out to feed.  Rhu was very hyped and circled me constantly. As long as my feet kept moving forward, I just let her circle until she calmed down.

It didn't take long for her to settle down and walk softly beside me.  We headed left off the main road rather than right and ventured into areas I had never been to before.

Found some bones on our walk ... guess that makes the scenery more interesting.  Lots of interesting footing today and we had to backtrack twice because I didn't know the area.

 We did find places to let her graze for a bit.  She was adorable but seems very unsure of herself lately.  We may need to institute more ground work in our routine.

Dead Things In The Desert

30 minutes - 1.03 miles - Rhulain

The morning started out normal ... Ryver helping me groom and saddle while Rhulain ate her morning snack

The ride started out normal ... a slight mist burning off as the sun started to rise

And then this happened ...

Rhu started acting oddly.  I turned her towards the same wash we were in last Thursday, but she started breathing heavily.  We started trotting to move away from whatever it was that had her so upset.  

Over the next crest we saw something in the distance.  Rhu's legs deadlocked and I took these pictures to figure out what it was.  Looked like a calf or goat carcass.  

It's not unusual to have a mountain lion, bobcat, or coyote pack in the area so we hustled out of the wash.  A jackrabbit sprung out of the brush just as we started trotting and Rhu took a huge step to the side, but then continued on in a controlled manner.

Are you two sharing?   Mmmm hmmm

Once she slowed down I asked her to stop, then swung out of the saddle and reached out to her ... she dropped her head into my torso and let me rub her ears and neck.  When her breathing returned to normal I hopped back in the saddle and we headed home. 

I appreciated her warning signs, her willingness to listen, and her accepting the offer of comfort when the danger passed.  It was a great bonding moment ... we listened and trusted each other fully.  She's Amazing.

Luppy!

15 minutes - 0.65 miles - Luppy!

In honor of National Dog Day, I asked Luppy if she wanted to go for a walk.

She has limited experience in wearing a leash, but she did rather well ... we only got it tangled in one bush :) 

She found this odd set of bones on our walk, but she didn't try to bring any home.

That girl walks way faster than Morgie or Rhu!  She had me panting a bit on the way home.